ReleaseWire

PR Guru Vinod G Nair Embarks on Mission to Democratize the Indian Film & Entertainment Industry

Launches talentube.com with $12M of cash and committed funding

Posted: Sunday, May 13, 2012 at 11:45 PM CDT

Mumbai, Maharashtra -- (SBWire) -- 05/13/2012 --Talentube, a global talent discovery, launch and opportunity platform for the Indian film and entertainment industry announced its company launch recently. Talentube’s primary mission is to offer life-altering opportunities within the Indian entertainment industry to aspiring talent on a scale and format that is a first of its kind in the world. In another first for an Indian start-up, the founding team of Talentube comprising of ace marketer and communication expert Vinod G. Nair; technocrat and computer engineer Ravi Nagpurkar, an MBA from Duke University; and Silicon Valley based Rakesh Sreekumar, a graduate of XLRI with over a decade of startup experience has managed to raise US$12m in cash and committed funding for the next two years. The funds will be utilized to build India’s largest community of talent as well as to provide them with thousands of opportunities to launch and enhance their showbiz careers. Talentube will produce its own films, television serials, events, shows and other properties and continuously offer all the opportunities within them to the Talentube community members on an exclusive basis.

To begin with, in the first year, Talentube will be focusing on Bollywood as it is the most desired career destination for aspiring talent. In a coup of sorts, Talentube has roped in three of India’s leading filmmakers – Sudhir Mishra, Mahesh Manjrekar and Sangeeth Sivan – to direct its initial three film productions. The first movie that will be offered to the talentube community will be directed by National Award Winning Director, Mahesh Manjrekar, followed by National Award Winning Director Sudhir Mishra’s film and a third project by the highly successful and iconic filmmaker, Sangeeth Sivan. In the coming weeks, talent across the country will get the opportunity to audition for Mahesh’s film from the comfort of their homes or even using their mobile phones.

Says Vinod G. Nair, Founder & MD of Talentube and Managing Director of Clea Public Relations, “We are a trio bitten by the we-wanna-do-more bug brought together by fate and Beerud Sheth, our Founding Mentor. Talentube is a result of the common passions that we share and our burning desire to democratize Bollywood and the entire Indian entertainment Industry!”

The Talentube model is unique and a world first, since it offers the entire gamut of talent opportunities within each film (acting, singing, dancing, choreography, song-writing, script writing, music direction etc.) exclusively to the Talentube community. Only a few key technical talent like Director, Cinematographer etc. will be pre-decided for any project, while the rest – kalakaar to chitrakkar and hero to zero – will be chosen from the Talentube community. Aspirants will be able to audition and interview for the opportunities both online as well as offline and will be guaranteed a fair and transparent process of selection. Every project will be guaranteed for completion and every audition will be considered and evaluated for short-listing.

By the second year, apart from Hindi films, Talentube will also be announcing film projects in regional languages such as, Punjabi, Marathi, Malayalam and Bengali amongst others; and will also make its foray into the world of television serials and television commercials. All opportunities that arise in these areas will also be offered exclusively to members of the Talentube community. As the community grows, there will be many projects being announced simultaneously and continuously including talent hunts for singers, dancers, game shows, model hunts, beauty pageants and other innovative properties.

Talentube has put together an ‘Innovation & Creative Advisory Board’, chaired by Sudhir Mishra and comprising of filmmakers Mahesh Manjrekar, Sangeeth Sivan, Bobby Khan (who is also the Producer and Creative Head for Talentube); Veteran Cine-Journalist and Editor Cine Blitz, Nishi Prem; Beerud Sheth, Co-founder and CEO of Gupshup, the world’s largest mobile community and the irrepressible, multi-faceted and gregarious RJ Malishka. Apart from catalysing innovation and nurturing creativity, the Talentube Innovation & Creative Board will also mentor, groom and train selected talent.

Says Sudhir Mishra, Chairman of Talentube’s Innovation and Creative Board – “It’s not just the talent that needs us! We too need them! With Talentube, new talent gets the opportunity for the big break where they get to work with well known and acclaimed filmmakers. And even talent that is seeking to enhance and grow its career can be a part of the community and seek the right opportunities for themselves. I believe that Talentube is a disruptive and game-changing initiative that will take Indian Showbiz to its next generation”.

Every audition that is submitted on Talentube, goes through a four-stage filtration and short-listing process prior to making the final short list that is evaluated by the Director. The Talentube team has indigenously developed a unique and revolutionary evaluation tool called the Talent Quotient (TQ) Meter. Based on parametric evaluation principles, heuristic algorithms and pro-logic decoding techniques the TQ Meter provides members and applicants with a personalized TQ Score that analyzes their relevant skills, characteristics and suitability to the aspired role. The TQ Meter identifies area of improvement and guides the aspirant towards achieving greater success in their auditions.

Adds Vinod G Nair, “Talentube’s objective is to become the single largest producer of entertainment IP in India and also to be the largest community of qualified talent in India. We hope to establish a meritocracy within showbiz, where the talented get equal opportunities to thrive and succeed.

Press Contacts:
Toral Sanghavi
Clea Public Relations India
M : +91 900 496 2222
Email : toral@cleapublicrelations.com

Neha Varma
Clea Public Relations India
M : + 91 989 919 8168
Email : neha@cleapublicrelations.com